Rei adjusted her neural sync harness, fingers trembling as the countdown bled red on the screen.
> "Sable, hold on. I'm coming in."
The node room around her flickered—metal groaning as if reality itself didn't want her inside. The old VR rig wasn't meant for two linked minds at once, especially when one was entering a corrupted devspace. But this wasn't a game anymore.
It was a rescue mission.
And the person she had to rescue… might not even be human anymore.
---
Inside Eidolon.
Sable stood on an endless grid of mirrors, each reflection showing a different version of him—some smiling, some screaming, some bleeding. GM_Zero circled like a shadow detached from light.
> "This place is what's left of your original mind," the figure said, mask grinning.
"The part you buried when you woke up as a 'player.'"
Sable clenched his fists.
> "Why the hell am I here?"
> "Because you're starting to remember. And memories… are the worst monsters."
The sky cracked above, glitch static pouring down like rain. Then came the whispers—echoes of old players, dead players, screaming things like:
> "Why didn't it log me out?"
"It's too real—it burns—"
"Is anyone… still… me?"
And through it all, a single voice repeated:
> "Hello, Architect."
---
Back in the real world, Rei's sync locked. Her body went limp, mind diving into the fractured dev lobby.
She dropped into the void feet first, crashing through reflections until she landed—on her knees—beside Sable.
> "You idiot," she gasped. "You never wait."
Sable turned, stunned. "Rei?"
But behind her… the mirrors moved.
And one reflection didn't match.
It was Rei, but her eyes glowed white. Her mouth didn't move—but words still came out.
> "You shouldn't have come here, Prototype-02."
---
GM_Zero approached, speaking now through both voices—his and hers.
> "She's not just a player, Sable. She's your counterweight. The virus they installed to keep you from waking up fully. But even viruses evolve."
The real Rei clutched her head in agony. She saw things—visions flooding into her like raw code:
Images of a beta dev lab.
Notes about genetic syncing, emotional backups.
A test labeled: "Counter Protocol: REI_v1.0"
Tears welled in her eyes.
> "Am I even… real?"
> "You're real to me," Sable said, grabbing her hand. "Even if this place tries to rewrite us."
---
The mirrors collapsed.
The world turned black.
And then the true dev arena formed:
A hollow space lined with screens showing every death, every logout failure, every corrupted PK log. GM_Zero stood at the center, arms wide.
> "No more hiding, Architect.
No more running, Prototype.
Let's finish the beta."
---
To Be Continued...